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I know this is discussed all over the web but a quick search didn't bring up discussions at Rennlist. I value your input. I'm the proud new owner of a Trailex 8045. I purchased the wheel straps from Trailex as well. With my current setup, I need to cross strap the front and rear. In tightening down the ratchets, what's the likelihood of throwing off my alignment when using these wheel straps (the kind that pass through a spoke and lasso the wheel and tire)? Are the forces from the ratchet straps far less than what the car normally generates on track (ie no issue with affecting alignment)? Or do I risk trashing my alignment if I tighten the straps down?
I ordered some T-hooks for the frame rail holes but there's a chance I won't receive them in time for my event this weekend.
I know this is discussed all over the web but a quick search didn't bring up discussions at Rennlist. I value your input. I'm the proud new owner of a Trailex 8045. I purchased the wheel straps from Trailex as well. With my current setup, I need to cross strap the front and rear. In tightening down the ratchets, what's the likelihood of throwing off my alignment when using these wheel straps (the kind that pass through a spoke and lasso the wheel and tire)? Are the forces from the ratchet straps far less than what the car normally generates on track (ie no issue with affecting alignment)? Or do I risk trashing my alignment if I tighten the straps down?
I ordered some T-hooks for the frame rail holes but there's a chance I won't receive them in time for my event this weekend.
Thanks,
Alex
Strictly my opinion, but I think that if wheel straps alter your alignment, someone didn’t torque things properly. There is a lot of give in the straps. That said, I much prefer hooking to the subframe or suspension members of cars simply because when I do I almost never have to tighten the ratchets during the haul.
Agreed. Something wasn't torqued properly if the wheel straps alter your alignment...and it would've been altered by driving anyway.
I prefer to tie down by the wheels and over the wheel straps. Then input to the body is no different than ordinary driving. Your style of wheel straps are the next best choice.
With your style of wheel straps, be sure to loop the strap through wheel spokes that are between 6 & 3 o'clock on the rear and 6 & 9 o'clock on the front. Do NOT use the bottom most spoke...if you do there is chance that the strap will simply spin the wheel.
Aren't wheel straps designed to go inline with the wheels only?
If you have to cross the straps, then the better way would be to attach to the frame. You can mix, ex cross to frame in front, straight in the rear using wheel straps. The Rennline hooks that mount to the front jacking points are really good and easy to install. Rennline also makes good hooks for the rear if you need to cross in the rear.
If you are using wheel straps and crossing the them to the attachment point, you are not only adding sideload but also bending loads to the suspension.
If you search on this topic (beyond Rennlist) there are about as many opinions as a Motor oil or K&N air filter discussion. You will conclude that no tie down method is right and no method is wrong.
IMO the forces placed on the wheels and alignment by thru-the-wheel tie downs are nothing in comparison to the forces under load in a hard corner on the track. If some wheel straps are changing your alignment you have bigger problems than just the straps going on.
I try to use tie down rings. Snap hook makes me feel warm and fuzzy. I had the same reservations as the OP, but all the points made about wheel straps are well put. Makes sense. A caution against a tie down hook onto the frame. If I understand what you want to do correctly, this depends on tension to keep the hook or whatever attached. An example might be hooking onto the jack point in the front. If for any reason, if just one strap loosens, the tension which was keeping the hook on the frame is lost. And it falls off. I know from experience.
Originally Posted by spearfish25
Hey Everyone,
I know this is discussed all over the web but a quick search didn't bring up discussions at Rennlist. I value your input. I'm the proud new owner of a Trailex 8045. I purchased the wheel straps from Trailex as well. With my current setup, I need to cross strap the front and rear. In tightening down the ratchets, what's the likelihood of throwing off my alignment when using these wheel straps (the kind that pass through a spoke and lasso the wheel and tire)? Are the forces from the ratchet straps far less than what the car normally generates on track (ie no issue with affecting alignment)? Or do I risk trashing my alignment if I tighten the straps down?
I ordered some T-hooks for the frame rail holes but there's a chance I won't receive them in time for my event this weekend.
I agree with everything stated in the other responses above, but let me share my experience for some additional perspective. I have a GT4 and the same Trailex trailer you have, and I have experimented with several different setups on the tie down issue. I first started by using axle straps through the wheels like you are doing, but since the car was so far back on the trailer I did not cross the rear straps because the angle would have been too steep and I was concerned that the straps would not distribute the forces properly to hold the car in place in an emergency stop. The wheel strap approach did work okay, but like others have said, the straps would loosen after driving a couple of miles because the wheels would rotate slightly with the forces of the car trying to make the car roll. The loosening of the straps meant I had to stop on the side of the road in someplace to tighten them, sometimes in a locations that were not an ideal or safe places to stop. I also accidentally left the front wheel straps in the front wheels once and tried to unload the car. That time I heard a clunk, clunk, clunk and did not figure it out until the car was off the trailer (duh). Luckily no damage was done, but I felt pretty stupid.
Eventually I decided to try installing the Rennline tie down points mentioned above, and I like that way much better. Not only is it much quicker and easier to attach the straps to the car, but I don't have to deal with wheel straps covered in brake dust marring up my wheels, and I have not had to re-tighten the straps at all once the car is tied down. I do think the ride quality was slightly better when the car was tied down with the wheel straps, but even that is barely noticeable. Because of the way the rear Rennline tie down points work, I have to cross the rear straps, but the angle is not as steep as before because the tie down points are closer to the centerline of the car and I also moved the car forward a few inches on the trailer. I think for sheer stopping ability the old setup may have an advantage, but I think the current setup is probably still quite safe.
With respect to the alignment issue, I never had any problems with alignment changes when I used the wheel straps.
On the T hooks, I never tried them for the reasons explained in the other responses. The hooks can fall out of the holes in the chassis if the straps happen to get loose going over a bump or for whatever reason. If the hooks fall out, you could have a major safety problem on your hands. If you do decide to get the Rennline tie down points, be sure to get ratchet straps that have a snap hook on the end instead of the wire hook that some straps have. You want some sort of keeper that will prevent the hook from coming off the tie down point in all circumstances. I would also recommend getting ratchet straps with a "direct hook" ratchet, which places the ratchet as far away from the car as possible. You can buy those from Mac's Custom Tie Downs and the folks at Mac's are very helpful in terms of figuring out what sort of snap hooks to buy (e.g., twisted vs. not twisted) and what lengths you might need to get. Mac's also makes very high quality straps in my opinion (no affiliation).
With the rennline tie downs it is almost impossible for the hooks to fall out if there are attached correctly, from the top down. In the front I even have to put the hooks in at an angle and then rotate them over. That probably doesn’t make sense, but at least on my car it’s he case. If inserted from the bottom up they can more easily fall out if loosened.
Been using these straps (fronts shown) with these hooks on bolted on tie-down hooks front and rear. Can't come off and latch securely. I used wheels straps on a previous car and open trailer. Bolted on tie downs are quicker, and easier to use and much better overall IMHO.
Use the chassis tie down points that were designed for this. You can use T-hooks or if your straps have the U-shaped end, you don't need T-hooks. I bought T-hooks and was using them...one day at the track I misplaced them (put them in a compartment I forgot about) and then figured out I did not need them at all. I just put the hook directly in the hole. Carrying less stuff is better.
Make two X patterns, one front and rear and the car is glued to the trailer. There's no way a bump will make the hooks fall out. You would have to experience a tie down or ratchet failure - very unlikely. On mine I added two ratchets bolted to the trailer and put a strap through the rear wheels (call it the "oh $hit" strap) for peace of mind.
What is messed up is when you are going down the road with the car on the trailer and the alarm starts going off! The thing has a mind of its own. On same line of thinking, I double-clicked to open both doors from inside my house (so I did not have to take the key out), and when I got to the garage I heard a beep-beep, and it locked the doors automatically - WTF? I guess this is another feature - if you unlock the doors and then it does not detect the doors opening in some amount of time, it locks them back. Of course, I had to go back inside to get the key!
04-23-2018, 07:48 PM
Wheel straps vs T-hooks
What is messed up is when you are going down the road with the car on the trailer and the alarm starts going off! The thing has a mind of its own. On same line of thinking, I double-clicked to open both doors from inside my house (so I did not have to take the key out), and when I got to the garage I heard a beep-beep, and it locked the doors automatically - WTF? I guess this is another feature - if you unlock the doors and then it does not detect the doors opening in some amount of time, it locks them back. Of course, I had to go back inside to get the key!
